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Dan Barlow:

I'm not tossing my only points. And the only cards that can turn a pair of kings into something decent are the J and the 2. So the 6-10 go into the crib.

John Chambers:

In this situation, I would keep 2-J-K-K. True, if you keep the 10 instead of the 2, you are keeping your potentially highest hand. However, by keeping the 2, you have an extra chance to get at least eight points, and the 2 can also be used as an out card if needed.

DeLynn Colvert:

I'm going to keep 2-J-K-K like the others, but I'm planning to be aggressive in the pegging and lead a K. Maybe I'll be lucky and trap dealer for a triple.

George Rasmussen:

Keep 2-J-K-K and discard 6-10. 6-10 averages 4.224 to opponent's crib. 2-6 averages 4.792. 6-10 is 50% more likely to score a crib of two points or less, and 2-6 is 75% more likely to score 12 points or more. So 6-10 is much better on both ends of the point scale.

Michael Schell:

As first pone I start the game -8 to dealer's +8, which accounts for his roughly 12% edge in winning percentage. Since my positional deficit is exactly the same as dealer's positional surplus, I can equally well pursue an offensive strategy, a defensive one, or a balanced one (where I keep my options open). Once I see my first six cards, though, we've passed from the realm of the theoretical to cold hard reality. And the offensive potential of this hand doesn't impress. I have only two points going in, and keeping 10-J-K-K to maximize my average hand still leaves me with only two decent cuts (5 or Q).

I'm going to favor defense with 6-10. That only costs me two points of my maximum hand, but whereas 10-J-K-K is a lousy offensive hand, 6-10 is a good defensive toss, and 2-J-K-K is a good defensive pegging hand. I'm planning to lead the 2 and try to slow down dealer right away. This plays to my strengths, and gives me the best chance to upset dealer's inbuilt advantage.

Peter Setian:

I would keep 2-J-K-K. Seems like a basic "non-threatening" discard, with a few available cut cards for a mediocre hand.

HALSCRIB:

The humans are unanimous, so to keep this interesting, I'll toss 2-6 and hang onto the beleaguered 10-J-K-K. The human's 2-J-K-K isn't bad in this situation. But I think they may be underestimating 10-J-K-K's offensive pegging potential a bit. It gets at least one go against almost any dealer hand, and there's a decent chance of trapping dealer's K into a triple, or using the 10-J to trap a 9 or Q into a run for a four point peg. It's enough to convince me to go aggressive with these not-so-promising cards.

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Panelists

Dan Barlow won the 1980 National Open Cribbage Tournament, and made the 1985 All American Cribbage Team. His cribbage strategy articles appeared in Cribbage World for many years, and can be seen on the ACC Web site. He also provides strategy tips at MSN Gaming Zone. He has written seven books on cribbage, two of which have been glowingly reviewed in Games Magazine. All, including his latest book Winning Cribbage Tips, are available at The Cribbage Bookstore.

John Chambers was one of the original founding members of the ACC. He is a Grand Master, winner of seven major tournaments, and author of Cribbage: A New Concept, He also directs three annual tournaments: the Ocean State Cribbage Classic, New England Peer Championship and Charity Cribbage Challenge.